The Magpie

Ever Been Blackmailed? No? Well, You Have Now.

One wonders if Scott Morrison’s favourite old TV show is Father Knows Best. Maybe that’s why, when rebuffed by both the general community and his own colleagues in making the COVIDsafe app compulsory, he has resorted to a demeaning parental ploy of crude coercion. It is basically social blackmail by a rampant authoritarian. The Magpie huffs and puffs.

Her Majesty, our Mayor Mullet quickly back to form … getting it wrong even when she gets it right.

We may as well be under an administrator… in fact, The ‘Pie reckons we’d be better off under one, for a very simple reason.

Two of the best local headlines for a while.

Have the Dudley Do Nothings (Townsville Enterprise to you) hired Black Adder’s Baldrick to hatch their latest cunning plan? The ‘Pie’s flabber is gasted.

Anna Palaszczuk gets a public shafting … or does she?

And more of the unbelievable from the unspeakable in our regular visit to the US of A.

But first…

COVID – A Godsend For Some … Or At Least One

If he could’ve he would’ve … Scomo would most certainly have been happy to engineer the current crisis, putting behind him as it did bushfire holidays, sports rorts and forged ministerial emails.

But he just couldn’t help himself , putting on his Hillsong hat as the saviour and preacher all rolled into one. Trouble is, the Chinese aren’t very religious and took great exception to the PM’s suggestion of the origin of the virus was worth investigating. So much so, including the graphic description of Australia as the ‘gum on China’s shoe’, an undecided bystander would perhaps think the Chinese are a touch too defensive, even going to the blunt bludgeon length of threatening a wine, food and student boycott . Bentley certainly thinks the diplomatic coolies should cool it.

Time will tell if our PM abandoned caution a tad too quickly, and Australia will have to start making stuff ourselves.

Which wouldn’t be a bad thing, actually, and at least one informed analyst thinks so, too .

Respected demographer and economist Bernard Salt went on ABC Radio this week, looking towards where we go from here. And in a few short minutes, Mr Salt succinctly articulated what The Magpie has been trying find the right words to say for some years now. Salt’s most telling phrase? “We have a once in a century opportunity to re-set (our economic priorities)”. And The Magpie totally agrees it is a brave new world we should embrace, warts and all, offered to us by what otherwise is a human calamity. Listen to him talking great common sense to ABC’s Glen Bartholomew.

Not Too Much Sense From Another Quarter Though

Our Prime Minister’s tin ear made him quickly back flip on his initial requirement that downloading the controversial COVIDsafe app on to our phones would be compulsory – he belatedly realised it would be an enormous kick in the electoral cods , a step too far, of which he was swiftly reminded by colleagues who feared it might get them booted from their spot at the swill.

His pouting answer to that is a threat to our freedom, dressed up as a vital condition of lifting restrictive regulations.

He now says, download or lose reasonably redundant freedoms for longer than is actually necessary. Which could be several ruinous months. He says the tracking app is essential in locating carriers, and has even prompted some NSW Chamber of Commerce Nazis, with no opposition from the PM, suggesting members refuse service to those who haven’t downloaded. Oh, really? Businesses desperate fo cash turning customers away? How is that going to work, if they actually dared? What if offended people simply said they didn’t their phone on them – strip searches in MacDonalds? Just completely goofy, and if we’re not careful, this stuff will start to spiral out of control.

OK, so the app may assist in checking on the virus, and maybe civil libertarians privacy concerns are somewhat overstated (The ‘Pie doesn’t think so) but that is not the point. Morrison said it wasn’t mandatory, but now, in different words, says it is. Just the penalty has changed.

Look, it may only be along the lines of parents coercing or tricking their child into obeying them, but it is not intrusive behaviour that should be tolerated from a national leader. Scott Morrison makes no secret that he regards us all as his kids, to be pulled into line. He sees himself as the country’s paterfamilias, and shows his true colours when he patronizes us with statements such as ‘You have all earned an early mark for your good work.’

Save that creeping Jesus head-patting for counselling kids molested by the founder of your Hillsong church, mate.. Try it on us, the population, we will all suddenly speak Chinese, as in ‘Go fluck yourself.’

Party Tricks

One rib tickling quote from Morrison was his schoolmarmish exhortation that ‘we can’t keep living under the doona.’ Chortle, wheeze … true quote, and boy, half of Townsville agree with him. But you do have to wonder about Mayor Mullet (let’s leave Townsville voters aside for the moment).

Ever eager to strut the national – nay, even the international stage – she grandly announced that she would not be down-loading the COVIDsafe app.

Wow, The ‘Pie on the same page as The Mullet?

Well, no, not actually. Civil liberties and all that lefty tosh is not her cup of Kool Aid (her faction is on the right).

No, our gal –yep, the same one who wanted to give $18million of ratepayer money to a dodgy Indian billionaire – has a very selective dislike of foreigners. Madam Mullet wasn’t going to sign up because the data would be kept by an Amazon company, and she has trouble with ‘foreign companies holding such information, when the contract should’ve gone to an Australian company’.

Not to worry about the facts. Like these from the Astonisher story.

“A federal Department of Health spokesman said Amazon was using its AWS data centre in Australia, which was certified to the “protected level” under the Government’s Protective Security Framework and was already in use by the government, retailers, airlines and banks.

The spokesman said AWS was selected on the basis of capability, scalability and value in implementing the proposed solution.”

This is the woman who was duchessed on a fabulously expensive US jolly dressed up as exploratory contract talks with … IBM.

IBM is an American computer company. Which does work for the Townsville City Council.

Always amusing and amazing … and we look forward to another four years of continuing enjoyment.

Funny Fronters

Working on the basis that even a blind desert dog can find the occasional tree, the Astonisher managed to come with not one, but two, great front page headlines during the week. When you have a bizarre story, it justifies a bizarre front page, which is what we got, with a laugh, yesterday.

Earlier in the week, the mayor refusal to download the COVIDsafe phone app was neatly summed up.

That one could’ve been even more quote worthy had it been ‘Not ‘Appy, Jen.’ But hey, pretty good.

Speaking Of The Council

It appears that Mayor Mullet has been –unnecessarily – a bit of bitch towards the one independent on the council, Sue Blom. The mayor seems to think it is OK to call a secret meeting – on council premises – excluding Clr Blom because she isn’t a member of Team Hill. That effectively disenfranchises all those ratepayers and citizens on the northern beaches who elected Ms Blom to represent their interests, because secret meetings are where occasionally brave soul on Team Hill may venture a tremulous query about the mayor’s wishes, only to be convinced of the error of their ways with a touch of Maltese strappado.

That way, when it comes to open meeting, Clr Blom can have her say with no one else uttering a word, and the vote taken as arranged. The culture of secrecy is able to continue, it appears.

It also raises the question as to why the mayor finds such meetings necessary. With a 10 to 1 majority, why shouldn’t matters just be thrashed out in the public council meetings. That is the least her constituents deserve, and have a right to.

Clr Blom posted an interesting little missive on FB during the week, which signalled that we can expect Tatty Townsville to become even tattier.

Sorry everyone been a crazy first 9 days of Local Government.

From inductions and learning the new way of doing things to dealing with being the odd one out and secret meetings.To proving I am there for us and the betterment of our city and community. I have found the other councillor’s to be friendly and are mostly trying to work with me. The city council staff are great they have worked hard to help me fit in under pretty weird circumstances .I am working with your Mayor and the Mayor is working with me. We both need to learn a little more trust but we will get there.I am not political. I do not care for who your choice of state and Federal government representatives are.I will work with all levels of government on your behalf. I will do my best to keep you my bosses informed on anything council related and I will work on our behalf with all Councillors and the Mayor to help make this City great.I ask for your patience over the first month or 2 while I get settled in and with our current situation that we respect one and other as we are all going through some very tough times.Lastly just a bit of information Local Government is not at this time able to get funding to help keep your council running and wages still have to be paid. So you may see levels of service change over the coming months. Council is trying to help rate payers with deferral of rates and please ring customer service if you need help or call me on 0435260342 or email email hidden; JavaScript is required.Kind RegardsSue Blom

Clr Blom can expect one of Mayor Mullet’s famous ‘carpetings’ for that burst of honesty.

Why We’d Be Better Off Under An Administrator.

And it wouldn’t make too much difference and save us a hell of a lot of money.

This headline is technically incorrect, inasmuch that the council just rubber-stamped a CEO decision.

The whole council declared a conflict of interest under the Belcarra Political Donation Laws on this project, and the decision on an entertainment centre at Idalia was flick passed to the CEO, Mike Chiodo. Who approved it in record time.

The proposal sounds OK on the face of it – although Laurence Lancini opposed it, probably because he wasn’t building it – but the decision-making process brings up The ‘Pie’s point. If an unelected CEO is making such decision – and you can bet it won’t be the last one – an administrator would be a better arbiter.

Why? Because an administrator isn’t on a contract that the elected councillors can refuse to renew or extend, like a CEO. And unlike a CEO, an administrator is not susceptible to local winks and nods, and just makes decision on their merits, not on his own job security.

And oh yes … an administrator could not give a flying fuck what the Bulletin thinks of anything.

Just a thought.

You Really Have To Wonder

The biggest local WTF this week comes from the Dudley Do Nothings. Looking at the ever shaky tourism sector, the brains trust of TEL (please, no jokes, it’s just mocking the afflicted) has come up with a wonderful variations on their usual posture of holding out the begging bowl to the government. This week, they launched a jaw-dropping campaign to help businesses suffering from the dearth of tourists … holding the begging bowl out to the cash-strapped struggling Aussie public.

Yep. that’s right … in a time when half the country looks like being unemployed, and cash will be in short supply everywhere, Townsville Enterprise are trying to get people, most of them at their lowest financial ebb, to PAY NOW for goods and services they can redeem on a holiday here sometime in the next two years.

Can’t wait to see the figures as the dough floods in.

Look, The ‘Pie was going to make merry with this deeply demented inanity, lots of puns, quips and sly digs, but he’s just not up to it, it is just so bloody sad … and we continue to subsidise these complete fucking nincompoops. Townsville will remains Fuctsville as long as these retards are milking us.

Pie In The Sky

Remember last week’s mention that four vintage planes, were denied an exception to the inane virus rule about ‘non-essential activities’ when they applied to do their usual fly-past of four Anzac Day events on the south-east corner. The ‘Pie noted at the time that an aboriginal funeral got an exemption from the rules, but the tens of thousands of Australian war dead and veterans didn’t.

Then, during the week, Britain showed up Queensland’s chief health waffler Jeanette Young for the drongo she was on this issue. This from comments:

The Tangerine Terrorist in the White House is a pitiful sight to see, slowly, cruelly sinking into the abyss of dementia, but still functioning enough to be a real danger to others.

Pommy poet Pam Ayres avoided any vitriol when she summed things up with a rhyme or two.

Elsewhere, much was made of VP Mike Pence not wearing a mask when he visited the Mayo clinic. Oh, if only that were the greatest sin of the week.

And an armed band of white men, some with military grade automatic weapons, stormed into the Michigan parliamentary building this, demanding businesses reopen in scenes that would’ve been unthinkable just a few short weeks ago. While no particular action has been taken against the group, more than one person has pointed out vthey were exclusively white men braying about their brights as Americans … the question has poised about whether it would’ve ended without bloodshed from the authorities if the group been say black, hispanic … or, spare us, Muslim Americans.

The confrontation illustrated the the perceptive observation back in 1980 by the late visionary and writer Isaac Asimov: ‘There is a cult of ignorance in the United States … it is nurtured by the false notion the demoncracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge’.

Especially true if you’re the President.

And it is getting very close to many of giving up, beyond surprise, beyond shock, and when we do, Australian favourite naughty man, Kevin Bloody Wilson, has our anthem … altogether now.

And After That Bit Of Kulture, A Little Culture.

How many of these have you read?

…….

So another week trudges by and we remain to soldier on. Better times ahead, and you can chronicle it all in comments on the blog, they run 24/7. As does the donate button, if you are in any sort of shape to help with blog expenses.

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The Magpie's Nest is now more than five years old, and remains an independent alternative voice for Townsville. The weekly warble is a labour of love and takes a lot of time to put together. So if you like your weekly load of old cobblers, you can help keep it aloft with a donation, or even a regular voluntary subscription. Paypal is at the ready, it's as easy as ... well, easy as pie. Limited advertising space is also available.

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202 Comments

I agree with Bernard Salt about re-setting the Economy and Townsville will face its own re-set with falling property demand , property price drop, drop in the averages persons Super (over 1 million Aussies have withdrawn $10k ), job ? so spending will be tight . Sydney Uni just announced $270 mil in cut backs although (VC didnt think he should take a cut on his $1.5 mil salary ) , QCU announced $100 mil in cuts last week so whats happening at JCU ? . Its not just T.C.C. that is in a perilous financial position , COVID -19 was blamed for the reason that Qld treasurer Jackie Trad blamed for not handing down the promised Qld budget . Trad doesnt even seem to know how much Qld needs to borrow but more experienced financial modellers have stated that net State debt will jump 60% in a year . Trad and the Palaszczuk Government will do every thing they can to distract the media and voters on the States true financial position and only expects snippets before the October election .

Pay now and hope the business is still there, sounds more like it . The poor old Dudley’s drew the short straw when it came to nouse. The joint needs a real game plan, not brain farts. How much are these clowns earning?

The joint needs a business/personnel enema, a good flushing – and a study to see if what was once a great idea is now even relevant – and worth three quarters of a million dollars of ratepayers money every year. But maybe you’ve heard something along these lines in this blog before.

The mayor might like to explain to the public where all there/our residential information is kept. The property and rating systems of every council is kept somewhere else. So all that so called safe data including where she lives in Douglas, is kept by a different source other then council. To try headline herself against the opposing federal government is just grandstanding. Every time you call council it gets recorded. Broken water metre, rubbish not collected, neighbours dog doesn’t shut up! And the big one, when you try contacting your local councillor your diverted to a PA so they can pass it to that councillor after the mayor has looked at to first to see if its ok to publicly comment. Mayor, you are a complete idiot of the highest order. In my personal opinion as someone who works in IT, this app (covid safe) wont hold anywhere near as much information as that of what we all look at online everyday like Facebook. So to tell everyone in Townsville its a data collection tool that she doesn’t trust when her own systems track even more, then you and I know about is a complete contradiction.

Just to put the stupidity in context, Flight Centre conceded that they would need to refund people for cancelled flights …. people want the cash, not some dumb pay now, and maybe in the next two years, you just might get to redeem it. FFS.

That buy now holiday later campaign by TEL is a time bomb waiting to happen, and frankly how the members of TEL allowed it to proceed is beyond me. They have essentially now became a travel aggregator, offering to coordinate travel packages with local providers, for what looks like a fee of 6% transaction and administration when you look at some of the detail.
Have any of these incompetent fuckwits at TEL thought about the repercussions of some of these providers going broke over the next 2 years, and how as the aggregator someone might seek compensation from them for their part in the process. I have no doubt this is being done as a revenue raising scheme, as payment to TEL for membership will be at the bottom of every businesses priorities for the foreseeable future and many will cease being members, this is more about the Dudley’s own survival.

It was only after a great deal of thought – well, perhaps not that much – that The ‘Pie decided to take issue with someone trying to promote the city but this is just so wrong-headed, it could, as you say and for other reasons. not mentioned, be greatly detrimental. It is the sort of thing you’d expect to come from a late night bong session in a uni dorm. Those businesses involved in the promotion can hardly be blamed, deep analysis of such matters is not the strong point of desperate struggling outfits. It is based on just so many questionable assumptions, but happy to go back on that if TEL will show us some … any … research that suggests this is a good idea and now the time and place for such a pinhead campaign.

I wonder if there is any connection with an ex Airline staff member, then a Travel Agency Manager , then a Chamber of Commerce President in Townsville & the Buy Now Holiday Plan. Being mooted by TEL> Just Curious……

Perhaps, but the campaign is not being ‘mooted’ an idea or possibility for discussion, and in it’s adjectival form, ‘subject to debate, dispute, or uncertainty, and typically not admitting a final decision‘. This is a done deal, as far as one can see. Is there a lawyer on the TEL board?

Maybe I’m channeling Peter Newie but the COVID ‘actions’ get more suspicious all the time. Let’s exclude the fact that this is an illness, granted, that is spread virally. But is it the worst one in history? Enough to crash a global economy and push us towards a Great Depression? And what about some of the Governments reaction;
– Giving away billions of dollars to us mere mortals! Why? They NEVER give us so much of the sweat of their asscrack’s without it costing us something in return. BULLSHIT.
– Cash being withdrawn from service due to the ‘health risks that physical money poses’. What a load of BULLSHIT. No cash means everything is electronic – traceable, watched and monitored.
– They are supposedly ‘close to a cure/vaccine. Really? After just a couple of months? BULLSHIT.
– Scotty from marketing and Peter ‘E.T’ Dutton bribing us by saying we will stay under restrictions for longer if we don’t download their App? Why is this App so important? I call BULLSHIT. What is the real purpose of the App?
– The same measures being rolled out almost in succession day to day worldwide, something is not right with all of this. This is becoming a well planned and staged event. It’s all about a disease called COVID?? BULLSHIT.
Something really doesn’t sit right with this whole thing. Look at what they’ve done; made us even more fluent on Government, taken away freedoms and rights, caused separation and isolation and weakened large groups (remember the old saying ‘strength in numbers’). They have effectively canned protest groups around the globe by forcing them out of work and to stay at home. No more uprisings? Government would love that. And don’t ignore what’s been happening in our country with media and journalist privacy
being stripped bare, security laws being thrust upon us at airports and even when we go for a drive. New laws being introduced that further squash our freedoms and rights. If you think they will repeal these after COVID ends, think again. WAKE UP PEOPLE

Peter Newey has fallen in love with you, but you’re a bit too rational for TRRA. The ‘Pie believes the real story of COVID-19 is yet to be written, and although you linkages are highly speculative (they couldn’t be anything else at this stage), the idea is certainly up for rational debate. And it IS being investigated, but then, as old Juvenal said all those centuries ago, quis custodiet ipsos custodes – ‘who will guard the guards’, or in this case, who will investigate the investigators.

Ahhh, a fellow traveller ….. let’s keep a bit of perspective. Civil liberties have been evaporating for a couple of decades at least now. Governments and their police forces and the spy agencies – so called public safety personnel – love nothing more than to use public fear to drum up the next campaign of surveillance …. banks, government departments, insurance companies, Facebook, Google …. who else? They’ve been keep tabs on populations for a long while now, before Covid19. Fuck, Facebook and Google know more about a persons habits than themselves … freedoms have long been gone, and the slippery slope began with 9/11.

That app is typical of this governments approach to pretty much everything.

In addition to the privacy and data management concerns, for Apple devices there seems to be extensive debate as to whether the app is working effectively.

While the government says you just need to have it “running”, on Apple devices this is not so straight forward, they have a number security and privacy measures built in which shut down apps randomly searching and broadcasting Bluetooth signals.

Consensus on a few technical forums seems to be you need to have your device unlocked and the app on screen for it to work 100%, if the phone is locked it may work partially for a limited amount of time but the specifics are difficult to get to the bottom of.

Also worth further digging is the actual numbers downloaded, the government is claiming somewhere around 4 million downloads, any one in technology will tell you downloads is not a measure of anything, what you need are active users.

That aside, the download numbers don’t seem to add up Google’s App Store shows downloads for apps, and as of this morning the government Covid app was sitting at 1 million downloads, Apple don’t provide this info but in Australia the rough split of Google to Apple devices is 50/50 so that means 1 million Apple downloads, where are the other 2 million coming from?

Concerning the Covidsafe app, I decided to download the app, but find myself unable due to the age of my old but perfectly useable Android device. Now the decision is to go and spend upwards of around $400 plus just to download an app, or not.
I wonder how many others may face this dilemma.

Everything we do is tracked in some respect these days, it appears the dot has not connected for some people.

If you own/use a mobile phone, or an IT device which has a net connection you are being tracked. If you participate in any survey you are being tracked, if you make a phone call and you are told it is being recorded for ‘quality and coaching purposes’, you are being tracked. When you pay your bills online or in person you are being tracked. Have a Medicare Card, well you are tracked. There is no way around this people, just know that!

No tech head here, but The ‘Pie invites contradiction when he says none of those applications you mention link you to any other individual or – ultimately as will be required if activated by COVID – the location of your contact with what can be randoms. And the control of this app is in the hands of people who have simply shown they cannot be trusted to be either competent in storage or honest in usage. They are all either spooks nor politicians.

Or is it time for some padded cell isolation? Move over, Newey and stop farting.

That is true Pie, most don’t use the Bluetooth facilities and rely on Wifi or the network itself. I don’t have an issue with the app, only the govt tone around it, but as part of an overall strategy in tracing contact it has some merit. The app can be deleted at anytime, and if someone turns off their Bluetooth then it doesn’t work anyway as other devices won’t identify yours.
What I find really amusing in this whole thing is that safety technology companies have for some time being trying to get acceptance of this type of thing in the workplace, particularly on construction sites etc, where individuals would have location devices on them to track movement in the workplace and it has been rejected completely by the unions who find it a complete breach of privacy.

Cr Sue Blom’s Facebook musings are alarming, but not unexpected.
The sly fox in mayoral robes has given the community the rude finger at first opportunity. With an overwhelming majority she’s reminded everyone that its going to be more of the same for the next 4 years.
So the continued secrecy is no surprise, nor should be the suggestion that council may not be able to pay its staff/workers.
Before the election, when a council financial statement revealed debts of almost $600 million (my understanding is the figure is closer to $800 million), it was dismissed by the Townsville Bulletin, Channel 7 and everyone apart from Sam Cox as unremarkable.
Sadly, Sam got his maths wrong when attempting to put city debt on the election agenda, and that was the end of it.
Considering that Tony Mooney got the boot in 2008 because the council debt was $100 million, I find it astounding that the current crippling council debt level wasn’t an election issue.
Last week Sue Blom revealed the council’s financial problems on Facebook and the local media again turned a blind eye.
If Townsville collapses into bankruptcy much of the blame has to be worn by the local media, who didn’t ask Jenny Hill a single question when the financial position was revealed, and last week failed to even ask if there was any truth to Sue Blom’s Facebook posts.
So why?
Council spent a small fortune on advertising in the Townsville Bulletin and on Channel 7 during the 12 months leading up to the election.
Tender notices which are normally published in the classifieds section were suddenly large full colour ads in the front of the paper at 10 times the cost. On Channel 7 we were bombarded by council water wise commercials in prime time, despite the fact the dam was close to full and we had good summer rain.
An administrator needs to be appointed asap.
In the meantime, could Cr Blom please ask council bean counters how much ratepayer’s money was spent with the Townsville Bulletin and Channel 7 during the last 12 months?

Hopefully Sue will settle into the role, make alliances, know who her friends and enemies are or aren’t, and adapt to life as a Councillor. She needs a good 6 months, she is a first time Councillor. Then let the games begin – undermine Hill, leak what needs to be leaked to the media (probably pointless) or leak info to other sources so as to gain public attention. With every Council sitting raise lots and lots of questions every time the Mayor/CEO submit a paper, a report, or a project for a quarom vote. Make the purple doona wearer work for her money. And make her uncomfortable every step of the way. Who said you can’t have a little fun along the way??

You’re a nut case, as most Squirrels are … Sue Blom is not a first time councillor, she was one of the Townsville First team that successfully staved off the ruinous excesses of Mayor Mullet until they went down by association with the LNP. And your suggested course of action for her is complete bollocks, and certainly not the Blom style, it would be a stupid way to behave, you make her sound like a dumb Blom. All she needs to do is remain true to her constituents, support what she believes is good for the community, and oppose at every turn those matters that she believes are not in our interests. Given the make-up of the council, it maters not whether she succeeds in swaying colleagues to her point of view, it is her public record that will matter to her. And us. Under the circumstances, the only rule she has to follow is the old ‘unto thine own self be true.’ And what little The ‘Pie knows of the councillor, she will have the courage in the face of any possible self-interested hostility to do exactly that.

Mr Magpie, adding to your China references I noticed a story by George Megalogenis in The Age today about migration and thought you might find this snapshot from it of interest.

Australia’s settlement story today revolves around these two rising Asian nations, and the two cosmopolitan capitals that welcomed them. Between them, the Indians and the Chinese are responsible for more than a third of the three million migrants who have settled in Australia since 2001. The Indian community expanded by 560,000 and the Chinese by 520,000 over that period. Two-thirds of all the Indians in Australia, and three-quarters of all the Chinese live in Sydney and Melbourne.

The English, meanwhile, have seen their total numbers creep down in each of the past six years, from a peak of just over one million in June 2013 to 986,000 last June. The Indians and Chinese won’t catch them while the borders are closed, but both will pass them before the end of the decade once regular migration resumes.

The English had been the dominant ethnic community in every capital and regional town from the First Fleet in 1788 to the turn of the 21st century. Now four of the eight capitals have someone else on top of their ethnic ladder: the Indians in Melbourne, the Chinese in Sydney, the New Zealanders in Brisbane, and the Filipinos in Darwin.

Am looking forward to my footy both coming back soon, and my V8s, i know you love em magpie. But after seeing that the government have let the NZ warrior’s into the country one knows that they arnt coming by ship like the old days of rugby league travels. So my burning question to the wanks here in Townsville is how are the cowboys getting to NSW? Please anyone correct me but Qantas is the only one flying to Townsville apart from alliance. Virgin only flys Brisbane/Sydney/Melbourne at present. Qantas dosnt have a sponsorship agreement with NRL????? Only rugby Aust. Does that mean virgin, now in administration, will be flying again soon? Or are the cowboys getting a bus down? I havnt seen or heard how travel will be arranged anywhere yet. How can you make an announcement when the teams cant get there. Is this also why the mayor hasnt left for any trips to Brisbane since election because she wouldn’t be caught dead on Qantas? She must be teleconferencing with the courts down there hey.

These morons fly the oldest remaining Dash-8’s in the world and they are unreliable pieces of shit. It is a two-bit poorlybrun outfit and it is also a miracle that they haven’t put a plane into a mountain as yet. It would be safer for the Cowboys to ride skateboards interstate, at night, while the road is filled with B-Double trucks driven by inbreed high on Meth.

Qantas are not flying TSV – BNE direct currently, Virgin and Jetstar fly direct, QantasLink a 3.5 hr Q400 via Rocky, what a nightmare that would be. All NRL teams are flying on chartered aircraft mainly F100 Alliance airlines direct, there and back same day regardless of what time they play, no one stays overnight anywhere. I am fairly sure the Warriors flew direct NZ to Tamworth, the Alliance F100 has a good range for an old aircraft. Word I am hearing is the V8’s”s are fucked for Townsville this year and the season will resume in Darwin in July where the NT Govt will allow local crowds of up to 10,000 each day.

Evening All, isolation is par for the course out here. Talking to yourself and answering is normal, if that’s been happening to you. If you start to look for hairs growing on the palms of your hands though, you’re in trouble and need help. Getting real chilly out here too, nice during the day but getting frosty in between.

This devastating editorial from the Irish Times by columnist Fitan O’Toole is required reading for those who want to take a breather from the helter-skelter news cycle created by the American Psycho in chief. It clearly outlines the history we are seeing being made before our very eyes, but the general view is obscured by the daily distracting and now criminal antics of Trump.
It accurately explains how we got to where we are with the Tangerine Terrorist (no longer a joke name) but more telling and terrifyingly, points to where we will be going from here as one of history’s great empires is disintegrating before out eyes … and only a fool would think this will not have a major effect on Australia.It is riveting reading, masterfully expounded.

PLEASE NOTE: Because the original editorial, written on April 25, is behind a paywall, it has been aggregated by many other sites, and while The ‘Pie respects paywalls and always advocates the ethical treatment of serious journalism, he feels this stunning essay deserves a wider audience. So when you click the link, you may possibly need to scroll down to the heading Irish Times Editorial On Donnie – 247Sports.com

At least the Trump sex scandals have stopped. Damned fake news ! The downfall with Trump was always going to be his psychopathic personalities. In many respects a shrewd, if not egotistical and unforgiving, businessman. However, his need for constant positive confirmation, heartless attitude and love of hearing his own voice negates all the good he could have brought to the table.

Whilst not trying to suggest that Madam Doona knows what she is on about, the fact that the data for the COVID-tracking app is stored on Amazon Web Services (AWS) servers is concerning. Yes AWS currently have approval from the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) to store secret government data, but this expires at the end of June this year and will not, I am told, be renewed. This is due to the fact that data stored on US owned servers can be subpoenaed under US law. This precedent was set in a case involving Microsoft and the storage of data on a server in Ireland.

The american border to the south has been a perennial problem forever, drug cartels are shipping people , drugs and god knows what to the north. Guns come the other way to feed the gang wars and heinous crimes to the south.

They will have problems stopping the infection coming in from the south because they have no hard borders.

The thing that saved us was a hard border, the NSW government has paid the price when they decided to allow infected vessels dock and spread the infection far and wide.

Britain is imposing lock downs as well as allowing tens of thousands of foreigners into the country every day – most likely with a few of them infected (or many of them infected), its a brainless approach.

RICHARD BINGLEY
It is with great sadness that I have just learned that one of our much appreciated and feisty Nesters, Richard “Bing’ Bingley has died. Bing drew great regard when he was ‘givin’ ‘em hell’ on all manner of subjects aired here on The Nest, even when in hospital post surgery, and more recently when he was convalescing.

I would like to explain disasters and rout cause analysis.
Human Disasters or critical failures never come down to a single issue it is always a chain of events over a period of time that lead to critical failure. So in the case of the pandemic by all means look into what china’s failing have been but also into what put us in this situation. This has been a failing of all governments at all levels over the past 30-40 years and a failing of the agencies that are paid to advise and protect us. For this to never happen again we need to look inwards as well as outwards. ie why we have no manufacturing, why we are so heavily reliant on 1 nation for many of our goods, why we don’t recognise Taiwan, why we pay ASIO 600m a year, why we don’t produce our own PPE and army dress uniforms and subs and ships, why we distanced ourselves form our pacific friends, why our leaders can’t lead, why our jurno’s can’t investigate, why our universities can not survive without foreign students, why the baby formula is not on shelves in Australia, why china backed companies were and are still allowed to operate after they purchased PPE and sent it back to china and why farms in Australia are being brought out by chine’s companies and farmers here are paid nothing for their produce- just to mention a few. These are our consecutive leaders failing not the Peoples Republic of China.

In response to Axels comments: I think you are preaching to the converted, but you have put it very succinctly. I’m old enough to remember (vaguely) the post-war years and the struggle my tradesman father had to make ends meet to raise 3 kids, my mother confined to home duties. Neither Mum nor Dad had any inheritance to assist because of the Depression and the War. Despite his modest background, however, he was able to achieve, within 9 years of discharge from the navy, the following:
Save for a deposit on a house, pay enough off the housing loan to put a deposit on 100 or so acres within 1/2 hrs drive of a capital city, build a house on the land, and stock the land.
Then over the next 9 years he value added and was able to trade up to over 400 acres of river frontage complete with a homestead, shearing shed, and irrigation infrastructure.
Try doing that today on a tradesman’s wage. Most are working couples and lucky to own their house by age 55-65 having both worked most of their lives.
I recognise some pretty significant changes over the years, amongst them:
The stop to ship building, the prosperity of Tassie terminated by the Greens and Bob Hawke, no new Hydro to speak of, anywhere, since, Paul Keating’s Level Playing Field, (thanks Paul for the loss of the motor industry et al), the complete mismanagement of the Murray Darling system, the foreign buy-out of land and assets….I could go on all day. Yes you are spot on Axel, but I had to add my little rant.

The answer, dear Axel, is that Australian politicians (and a lot of Australian people) decided to chase the mighty dollar in a bid to get rich quick. By doing this they opposed further building on the solid foundation built by our forefathers pre WW1. We export all our best produce and ore, we have little in the way of manufacturing, we import mostly crap at highly inflated prices, we continue to sell off all the best Australia has to offer, and meanwhile, we find ourselves caught firmly between the two greatest superpowers in history in a face off. I believe we (Australia) became greedy, lazy, arrogant and along the way well and truly lost our ‘identity’. Latest news is that China are about to show off their new H-20 stealth bomber with a range which totally encapsulates Australia. Interesting timing.

Oh dear mate, how could you let a conspiracy theory opportunity like this pass? Eat ya heart out, Pete Newey.

China hasn’t ponied up anything for the EU fund BECAUSE THEY HAVE ALREADY HAD A VACCINE FOR TWO YEARS OR MORE. Then they ‘accidentally’ unleashed the virus on the world, and soon, after waiting a suitable to time to allay suspicion, they will announce that their brilliant scientists have come to the rescue, and they release the vaccine … and make a motza.

One day you’ll be looking down the barrel of a Chinese military invasion

I wonder where all your pithy witticisms will be then ?

China routinely ROBS organs from political prisoners and has done so for decades

China actively runs concentration camps and has done so for decades

They actively spy in Australia, steal it’s secrets and have no problem utilising useful idiots to keep the population asleep to this problem. Just ask the Tibetans about how Chinese rule has worked out for them – ahhh of course you can’t.

All flus come from South East Asia, we need to start preparing for the next disease sweeping out of it.

The US election will be the most entertaining in years with a subdued start due to the virus, but it will really ramp up towards election date. The democrats will have lots of cash with the money they have saved from shortened primaries and will go really hard on Trump, and the Republicans will go hard on China, really hard, and Biden will have no choice but to play along to a degree, otherwise he will be labeled as a pissweek communist sympathiser, and then he is fucked.

Having seen the heavily armed MAGA protesters inside the Michigan State Legislature the other day, I am now curious to see the reaction of these deep thinkers should Trump lose the November election, and I hope he does.

That’s very much a ‘heads I win, tails you lose’ suggestion, Dave. As Bill Maher said in the clip posted here a couple of weeks ago, there is a very good chance if defeated, Trump will simply refuse to go and he will these retard tiny dicks will mobilise to support insurrection. If he wins, they’re basically in charge as an influential lobby/muscle group anyway.

Mightn’t be a totally bad thing … nothing like a bit of ethic cleansing in the housekeeping schedule, although could end up as a (very brief) civil war.

Can i just say that it is indeed sad news about old mate Bing passing. I seen it in the TownsvilleToiletPaper today.
He did get a few more months after his heart op so he gained more than he thought he would.

We all get old and some of us eventually get lonely from all our mates dying before us but thats life folks. Most of my old man’s mate died in their 50’s and he is the last one of them.

There are a number of pests either causing havoc or barely being kept out of Australia. Most come from, surprise surprise, Asia.
– White spot outbreak is in fish farms in Brisbane again at the moment. Likely from imported cheap bait (from Asia)
– Brown marmorated stink bug is being found daily on international vessels coming to Australia (from Asia)
– Asian swine flu is at out our doorstep.
– Asian gypsy moth has been found in Australia (from Asia)
– Citrus canker still pops up in Australia (from Asia)
– Fucking fire ants (from the USA)
Asia, including China, are disease ridden shitholes that infect other innocent parts of this globe. We need to cut them off. Bastards

Not that The ‘Pie necessarily agrees with Turd Tosser’s selective list of sins, but Australia is not and never has been ‘part of Asia’. That political suggestion is only aimed at the economic sphere, and made us (rightly) stop looking mainly at Europe and the US for trade. The aborigines were never Asian in any manner (otherwise their existence may have exhibited somewhat more advanced material techniques), and then came Captain Covid in 1770 (what was that stupid woman – an immigrant whitey herself with a name that reinforces her antecedents – van Diemen – thinking?), and apart from allowing coolies in to work the gold fields and South Pacific islanders to work the cane fields in virtual slavery, the country was exclusively white for more than 150 years. Australia is an island that had little or no contact with Asia until white settlement, and we have a vastly different system of government to any Asian nation. Not necessarily better, just different. Hey, try this: ask any Asian (all different nationalities sure, but broadly linked through genetic heritage), if they think Australians are Asians.

My thoughts are that the LNP need to be thinking about rebuilding for the Election after this one. COVID has fallen well for the incumbent Labour and I think very hard to see much if any swing away from them this time. I’d leave Freckle as is and replace her after the Election. But I wouldn’t vote for the Kid either……. what the LNP would be wary of is replacing Freckle and then the new Leader gets ousted at the next Election meaning a 3rd choice is required. Messy.

Townsville small businesses are being left to die on the vine with Real Burger Bayswater rd + Players Pizza announcing they won’t re-open and that’s just the start . Queensland State Government have only announced payroll + land tax support but the majority of small businesses don’t fit into that category . The other States have announced emergency cash payments to keep their small businesses but the nothing out of George st Brisbane . All our 3 local MP,,s are doing is playing PR war with Phillip Thompson . Coincidentally our Mayor has also been very sketchy on actual small business support .

Mike whilst I agree about how hopeless local members and the state govt inadequate response to business and our incompetent Mayor failing as usual, I don’t see how 2 businesses whom sell predominantly take away type food failing is a reflection of this, but rather a reflection that the business was marginal before this thing even started. The business community needs to not start blaming Covid19 for everything that happens when poor management or a poor business model is really at fault.

In a new low for a community newspaper, The Bulletin decides to become a publishing pimp. No suggestion that the gals hawk the fork – well, not yet anyway and at least skim pickin’s for one of them if they do – – this sort of scummy stuff isn’t illegal, but neither is nose-picking, crotch adjusting, cleaning ear wax or pimple squeezing, no doubt all of which will soon be a Bulletin series of ‘Townsville best …” or ” Townsville most popular …,” or, harking back to his own childhood, The ‘Pie will be particularly taken with ‘Townsville longest acne squirt.’

Personal note to the gal on the right (Lexy): sweetie, you’d make more money as a before ad for Jenny Craig.

Magpie, lets see if this one makes it through the moderator.
I’ve been reading this blog with some interest since the re-election of Jenny Hill and most of her team, and in the process having a good chortle over the faith being placed in Sue Blom by you and your small cabal of WASPs (Whinging Aged Sanctimonious Pedants) in providing some sort of fiscal oversight and transparency. Let’s be clear….Sue Blom as a member of team Tyrell from 2008-2012 was responsible for increasing this cities non-current debt by 590% or almost $400million and along with it rates by 40% to stave of TCC insolvency from borrowings. In the time since, with Ms Hill at the helm, the TCCs NC debt has overall declined, all while keeping rates at CPI or less and delivering some big infrastructure spends. Blom has learned nothing since being booted in 2016….rumour has it that Cr Bloms solution to the revenue woes bought on council by Covid-19 was…you guessed it….INCREASE RATES. Maybe I’m being too harsh, after all she is just a “live-wire” hairdresser!! On inclusiveness, you don’t think Jenny Hill as the only non-team Tyrell councillor during that time was excluded from “secret team meetings”. Think again!! Same for JH and the two new councillors in 2012-2016. Doesn’t fit your story-line though eh? And as for transparency, Blom and several of her fellow Councillors were slapped with big fines for failing to disclose conflicts of interest….which TRUMPS anything this current mob could be charged with. I marvel at people’s short memories when it does not fit their worldview or desired narrative, yourself included Magpie. As for Sue the Saviour of Local Government in Townsville, with your penchant for sniffing out gossip and innuendo, maybe you should look into list of LNP candidates seeking pre-selection to run against Harpic in Thuringowa…you might be surprised as what you find. Oh, and it seems Ms Blom has removed her unbecoming FB post. Such misplaced hope from residents of the Ant(i)-Hill mounds. Pathetic!!

Oh Occam you fool. Your post, the wording and detail gives you away as being an acolyte of Hill, Hill herself, or just a general fuckwit. But there is a strong scent of NMD in your post. Posting under a new pseudonym you troll? In one post you basically say that Townsville is fucked because of Sue Blom, while Team Hill have had no negative bearing on the region whatsoever! WASP’s hey? Oh well, at least we don’t trip over our tits when we walk around town! Now get back under Hill’s desk where you have come from. Quickly now……

Yes a fact that Guy and other delusional dickheads forget to mention. I was dealing with both councils before amalgamation and with TCC post amalgamation. The waste after amalgamation was obscene, people with absolutely nothing to do yet the Labor state Govt legislated that no one could be made redundant. IT was a fucking joke post amalgamation and trying to sort out the water assets and modernise an ailing water infrastructure was an expensive operation. I agree that more could have been done to address debt after the 2012 election and the last 4 years have been just a fucking joke frankly and now Townsville is really going to pay for it.

At amalgamation, the merging of NQWater with the other two Councils brought into light the hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt that the water authority (owned by both Councils) had been allowed to accumulate. The current Council has been carrying it ever since, with no strategy for reduction. Don’t blame Tyrell; he inherited it. His former Council had no debt. I love it how the Tyrell haters try to rewrite history.

OR has to be one of Hill’s highly paid, highly protected, completely useless parasites that infect the upper management of OUR council.

The fact that OR knows what OR is, points to a southern FIFO where left-wing tertiary institutions revel in this sort of philosophical clap-trap. In other words, the Coronavirus equivalent of the TCC management disease that is wiping out our city from the top down.

OR old mate you dodged a well aimed bullet when Sam Cox couldn’t get enough votes. You are exactly the profile of numbf**k he was after to save the city $millions in payroll and to clear the place of the deadest of dead wood.

So we now have the perfect petri-dish conditions where you and your poisonous ilk survive – a city completely devoid of hope and ideas for another 4 years.

Ah Cappa, the Cabal is alive and well….and completely bereft. Almost comedic how anyone with a contrarian viewpoint is immediately labelled a Hill acolyte and “troll”, when I could not be further from either. There are many places one can go online for entertainment, (and this one never fails to disappoint); I just happen to largely disagree with the picture most of you paint, and I certainly don’t place my faith in false idol’s like Blom, Roberts, Davis or Cox, and I can think of worse things then filling my idle time winding up blinkered folks like yourselves…all while enjoying the anonymity we all cherish.

Your points are valid however, you forgot to mention debt now is 700 million and rising. With no major infrastructure to show for it. 600 staff sackings replaced by labor people. That was a good saving wasnt it. And hill would know from being in thoses council meetings with Tyrell that if things didnt happen in a certain way because of the Mooney days the state government were going to put TCC into administration. So yes rates went up but only because Mooney kept them low in certain areas of Townsville without raising them in line with CPI. Which meant some residents were paying for sevices for others because theres were way more expensive, so everyones rates were increased. You obviously forgot how long alligator creek residents were payibg well below the rsyes they should have been. 200 million to fix the treatment plants had to be spent because EPA were going to shut them down because of lack of maintenance. Another monney hidden trap. As you drive around town today ask yourself why are council workers fixing roads ( Ogden st city) to then have a state government sign put up telling everyone they paid for it. How come TCC hasnt got there own money collected by rates to do this?? As for sue blom theres a reason she got back in and your comments are of the team hill nature that your very worried shes going to find more then what you want to hide. So lets go on social media and bring her past up to discredit her. Did you see the vote count?

History lesson I don’t understand how Mooney could have kept rates low in certain areas of Townsville as you seem to claim. There might be a few exceptions in outlying areas that are unsewered or without town water etc. but surely the vast majority of urban residential Townsville (as distinct from commercial, industrial or rural) is subject to the same rating formula which is set as a percentage of the property valuation?

Correct me if I’m wrong but Mooney introduced a differential rates system in Townsville which capped rates in certain areas of the city such as Yarrawonga. I forget if other areas had lower rates depending upon level of services. Perhaps someone else can remember and enlighten us!

Not ECQ And i guess you wont be able to understand how Mooney could get such a lucrative job in Townsville after getting his arse handed to him from the public, twice! Count state run he made as well as loss as mayor. Rates were capped in secret for a very long time until Tyrell council found out, increasing the rates to catch up with rest of Townsville. It had nothing to do with less services it was all about votes in labor areas of Townsville. Does that answer your question?

Some serious question History Lesson, can you please unpack this figure of 700 million and rising? NC liabilities have declined in 6 of the 8 years Hill has been Mayor, including the projected repayment of ~40million in debt this year prior to Covid. No major infrastructure? The TCC undertook the biggest infrastructure spend in the cities history (the CBD utilities upgrade) in the past few years all while keeping rates at CPI and no major debt increase (general maintenance may have suffered). Did you walk around with your eyes closed? I can’t believe you weren’t one of the people complaining about the inconvenience of this. Staff sackings replaced by labor people? Proof please!! This is not a new refrains but to the best of my knowledge, the State gave councils a terms grace before requiring them to rationalize a workforce fattened by amalgamation, which the Townsville First councillors in their collective craven wisdom kept hidden, abetted by CEO Burton. But i think you as a former Councillor would know all that wouldn’t you, as well as the obvious deep understanding of pre- and post-Tyrell days, which arms you with just enough information to rewrite history to be a little kinder to you and others :)….the question may well be whether Sue Blom stays a Councillor long enough to shed some of the light you seem to think needs sharing, or whether she is leapfrogged to a higher calling!!

And in a previous unpublished honking, you suggested the Tyrell council hid a government report about slimming down the workforce, but when your Battling Boadeaica came along, she dusted it off and whammo, out they went by the hundreds. So in that case, subsequently, the Melbourne-based Nous Group report and strategy played no role in the appointment of the Nous/Labor-linked Adele Young, and the influx of several executive level appointments including inter alia the totally redundant and mysteriously titled city economist, and old Labor chum Chiodo, and the walking disaster that was the Screaming Midget Beckett?

And by the by, The ‘Pie doesn’t believe a council should be seen as visionary and particularly praiseworthy for doing what they are basically paid to do, take decisions about infrastructure.

But The ‘Pie and all the readers here that you loftily sneer at (you’re not Capt Snooze Reynolds are you?) are eager to hear your rationale of the following:
1. $18.5m ‘gift’ of ratepayer funds to a corporate Indian con artist, with highly doubtful advantages in return
2. Calling for a Qantas boycott, when the airline, unlike our mayor, made a commercial call (none of her business) to support a passenger tax to fund infrastructure of a private company
3. Gifting Jamie Durie a $350m contract, which is to be administered by another $500m plus contract council brown-noser Carey Ramm.
4. And Mayor Mullet’s reckless dealings with a now worthless company, Magnis Technologies, including the promise of a large land grant which was knocked on the head by subsequent state laws.

Maybe Occam could be the smooth talking Lara Hill, or the local labor rat (Col Smith) who incidentally better keep looking over his shoulder as a certain old Front Rower from the past is waiting to run into him somewhere for a little chat!!

Return and do what – start a media consultancy with Lara Hill? Buy a Postie Bike and ride around Maggie every day? Paint the outside of Mayor Hills residential home(s)?
Adele, you are dross. Please don’t return.

CEO suspiciously quiet says it all. On 29 April Infrastructure Australia released its evaluation of the Haughton River Pipeline Stage Two project and has determined it will not include the project on the Priority List at this time. It looks like the Commonwealth has pulled the pin. Stage 1 is expected to be completed by the end of 2021. Based on the business case presented to IA for Stage 2, once these Stage 1 works are delivered there was no clear requirement for Stage 2 works at this time. So all the hoohaa about saving money and guaranteeing a long term water supply seems to have gone out the door with less than a peep from Townsville.

Jenny Hill’s very public refusal to download the covid-19 app had an immediate impact.
When she made known her dislike for the app, approx 800,000 people had signed up. There are now more than 5 million.
Shades of her call to boycott Qantas.
What a dud.

Hahaha … she’d like to think so, but 800,000 southerners would hardly be swayed by what they regard (not entirely incorrectly) as a banjo-pickin’, cane toad stompin’, Sheriff Rosco mayor of some place ‘up in the deep north’.

It is interesting to note that her little foot-stamp was barely mentioned in the mainstream media and had all the impact of a Jamie Durie lecture on how to turn off a tap.

The pipeline that doesn’t go anywhere is laying stagnant at moment?. one of the engineers that was working on pipeline lives above me in our complex, told me the pipeline was a complete farce and goes to now where and nobody knows what’s going on either and he has been taken off job and sent to another out of town.

The big issue OG is that if they extend per stage 2 to Claire then they don’t have to install the pumps at the current termination point at the Haughton River. So until this is resolved nothing will happen.

Thanks to the Astonishers stellar reporting, it looks like the ATO will be cracking down on the chickies who have said that they are raking in the big bucks through the OnlyFans soft core porn site. Great work!

The thoughts and prayers of all the equally grubby OnlyFans subscribers will be with the gals … especially the thoughts, which will followed soon afterwards by the prayer starting ‘God, oh, God, YESSSSS!!!!’

Precisely! Why should these pouting, gum-chewing, hair-twirling pox doctors’ delights not be paying tax, as you imply? Perhaps, NQG, you should be lauding the Astonisher for its public minded story … God knows they get so little positive feedback, but even a blind squirrel finds the occasional nut.

Unfortunately sarcasm doesn’t translate well. I think it’s great that the ATO will be taking a look at their earnings. All the “influencers” who don’t declare that they are paid for comments should be investigated as well. As for how I know – well that’s on page 14 of the Astonisher.

ABC Radio interviewed Reece Power, brother off Jess Power from ‘MAFS’ fame. Reece is on OnlyFans and has 3000 subscribers each paying $12.00USD per month. He then gets ‘extras’ like $800.00USD for video of his feet. He said he has a lot of gay subscribers. It is BIG money.

Hmmmm read the article! a bit tricky as I’m marooned 4000Km North and will not subscribe to the TB on-line.
If you have a subscription why not share the article, if you have a hard copy why not scan and enlighten all of us?

That’s an absolute no-no, with which The ‘Pie totally agrees. The Bulletin has already got it’s Gucci ponchos in knot over some bloke publishing subscriber only content in that manner on a FB page. Using portions of a story for the purpose of criticism (The ‘Pie is exhibit 1) can’t be challenged, but lifting whole paywalled articles is both unethical and unfair … no matter how low the standard of journalism is.

The council was rail raided into the pipeline by various groups I’m afraid. The idea was noble but the bucks involved were enormous , now you have a pipeline to nowhere. I walked away from the idea years ago.

If we had spent literally 2- 5 million we could have had bought a brand new omniprocessor system and pumped distilled water around Townsville.

The fastest , most cost efficient way to make existing water resources last longest is to RECYCLE ALL water.

It was nice to think all the money was going to come from some magical money tree.

The silver lining is that Townsville council has decided that water recycling is viable and all that water normally pumped out to the ocean is being put to some use. Paul Jacob got the water recycling train going, the council continued with the project.

FWIW, my recent thoughts to knocking corners off the car theft epidemic is to encourage people to install deadlocks. You can buy a 35 dollar dead lock at bunnings. If it’s much harder to gain noiseless entry it will be harder to get car keys. I’m sure there will be some outcry against dead locks and how locks and doors don’t stop thieves…..

Is it just me who read the front page about Suzie batkovic. Introduced as former Townsville fire captain. Now i didn’t read the article but im wondering why is she introduced as the title above when she is now an elected local government official, no mention of that on front page. Im guessing most of division 6 didn’t know who she was but just voted her because shes number 1 on ballot paper.

What a tragedy that Trad is facing another corruption inquiry and has stepped aside from the ministry. Nek minit, she will say that she is not recontesting her seat, which in all likelihood was going to fall to the greens anyway. Roll on October!

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